Dedham man arrested after barricading himself in home, held on $7,000 bail

Friday

Mar 7, 2014 at 1:20 PMMar 11, 2014 at 5:12 PM

William Barton was arrested after confining himself in his Dedham home on Friday. Metro-LEC SWAT team called in to assist. He was held on $7,000 bail after his arraignment in West Roxbury District Court on Monday.

Dedham Public Schools required parent pick up for kids who lived near incident.

Sara Feijosfeijo@wickedlocal.com

Dedham Police arrested a resident 4 ½ hours after he barricaded himself in a Leonard Street home last week.

William Barton, 40, of 73 Leonard St., who was wanted on a default warrant for unarmed robbery, was spotted by police at about 11:30 a.m. on Friday, police said.

After refusing to respond to officers who spotted him getting out of a car and heading into the 73 Leonard St. home, police called the Metropolitan Law Enforcement Council for assistance, police said.

"He just wouldn’t come out," Dedham Police Chief Michael d’Entremont said minutes after the arrest at 4:10 p.m. on March 7, adding that Barton did not have a hostage or weapon.

Renee Nadeau Algarin, deputy press secretary for the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, said Barton was held on $7,000 bail after his arraignment on Monday at West Roxbury District Court.

As of Tuesday, Barton had not posted bail and was being held at Suffolk County Jail, according to Sgt. William Peneau of the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department.

Barton’s mother, Linda, said he did not leave the house because he was afraid of police.

"They were banging on the door for him, and the history with Dedham Police is that they beat him up before," Linda Barton said Friday at the scene, while officers and the metro SWAT team had Leonard Street and part of neighboring Birch Street blocked off. "What happened was he was afraid to come out of the house with the Dedham Police, afraid that he was going to get beaten again."

When asked about Linda Barton’s allegation, d’Entremont said there was no incident of police brutality.

"I have no idea what his mother is referring to," d’Entremont said Monday.

Standoff

As police shouted on a megaphone, "William Barton, answer your phone. Dedham Police. Answer your phone," several people gathered around the perimeter on Birch Street, near Leonard Street, waiting to see what was going to happen.

"We saw the snipers," said Skye Kessler, who had just left from her work at the Dedham Housing Authority. "They came in their own vehicles. Each one of them jumped out. They suited up, and then they set up their sniper guns on the bipod."

Joe Heisler, chairman of the Dedham School Committee, said Superintendent June Doe helped kids who live in East Dedham and wouldn't be able to get home due to the incident.

"Police have the whole area blocked off, so we have to do something," Heisler said Friday in a phone interview. "They're trying to reach parents, make alternate arrangements."

Clare Sullivan, principal of Avery Elementary School in East Dedham, sent an email to parents on Friday.

"We will be holding any walking students who are not met by their parents," Sullivan wrote. "Parents of walking students should come to the school to pick up their child."

Massachusetts State Police and Boston Police also assisted with the arrest.

Criminal history

The warrant, issued for Barton out of West Roxbury District Court, stemmed from an incident this summer, according to Algarin.

Back on July 2, 2013, Boston Police responded to Dunkin’ Donuts, at 680 American Legion Highway in Roslindale, for a report of a robbery, Algarin said.

An 18-year-old man told Boston Police that he was selling make-up kits in the store’s parking lot when Barton allegedly stole $60 and four cosmetic sets, Algarin said.

"The victim told police that he was arranging a sale with a man in the passenger’s seat of a vehicle when the man grabbed the victim’s wallet," Algarin said. "The two took part in a brief struggle, during which the victim kept his wallet, but the man was able to grab $60 and four cosmetic sets before the vehicle took off."

The victim identified Barton’s photo on a later date, as well as the driver, Martina Powell, of Dedham, Algarin said. West Roxbury District Court issued warrants for both Barton and Powell, Algarin said.

Powell was arraigned on Sept. 10, 2013. Barton is due back in court on March 21.

Barton was also arrested seven years earlier by Brookline Police in February 2006 in West Roxbury on two counts of armed robbery, larceny of property over $250 and operating without a license, according to a previous article in the Brookline TAB. Dedham Police assisted with the arrest.

According to the article, Barton allegedly robbed a CVS on Harvard Street in Brookline on Jan. 23, 2006 and left with more than 1,400 Percocets. He also allegedly robbed Brookline Bank, at 1018 West Roxbury Parkway, on Feb. 2, 2006, according to the Brookline TAB.

"Mr. Barton acted similarly to what he did last Friday, being non-compliant and becoming a public hazard," d’Entremont said Monday.

Barton also had a run-in with Dedham Police in 2010 due to a housing issue that did not result in an arrest, according to d’Entremont.

Staff writer Sara Feijo can be reached at 781-433-8336 or sfeijo@wickedlocal.com. Follow @s_fjo on Twitter. Like The Dedham Transcript on Facebook and follow @DedhamTranscrip on Twitter.